Burger King's US Sales Soar on Revamped Menu and Refranchising Efforts

RBI's Burger King restaurants in the US saw an 8.5% increase in comparable sales, outperforming the burger category and even lapping McDonald's 0.8% growth. The revamped Whopper is credited with this turnaround, which cost each restaurant around $4,000 annually.

This upgrade was part of a larger strategy to turn around Burger King's struggling US operations, including a $1.5 billion investment in remodels and kitchen equipment. RBI also acquired the largest franchisee, Carrols Restaurant Group, for about $1 billion in 2024, allowing it to take control of over 1,000 restaurants.

The goal is to sell these restaurants back to smaller local franchisees at a price supported by the new comp, while keeping a couple hundred for training and testing. RBI aims to refranchise the vast majority of these restaurants and sunset the Restaurant Holdings segment, which houses the Carrols restaurants, Popeyes China, and Firehouse Subs Brazil.